Honolulu – With organizers monitoring the potential impact to the island of O‘ahu from Hurricane Madeline and Hurricane Lester over the next several days, the IUCN World Conservation Congress Hawai‘i 2016 and all of its sessions and programs are continuing as scheduled at this time. The IUCN Congress begins tomorrow, Thursday, September 1, 2016 with opening ceremonies at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center, and then continues at the Hawai‘i Convention Center for the remainder of the conference.

If storm conditions do necessitate any changes to IUCN Congress programming, this information will be reflected on the official IUCN/World Conservation Congress website, and through official notification from the State of Hawai‘i and the City and County of Honolulu. Information on how to be “hurricane ready” can be found at the city’s Department of Emergency Website at http://bit.ly/2bDMige.

Visiting delegates, media representatives, and others planning to attend the IUCN Congress are reminded to be hurricane aware and monitor local media updates until these two storms are well away from the Hawaiian Islands. Hotels and lodging properties hosting delegates are also providing awareness and safety information to their guests.